A/N: Once upon a time, in a Forum on ff net (POT stands for Pointless but Original Talking!), there was Thread for Challenges (now deleted), and on that Thread, an author (hyperdude) posted a challenge, which another author (me) accepted.

This story is the product of that challenge. I hope you'll come to enjoy it as much I have and hopefully, will continue to enjoy.

Comment's, critique, all welcomed and appreciated.

It was another boring day at Seishun Gakuen, and another boring English class for Ryoma. They'd attended the third years' graduation ceremony last Friday and now, at the beginning of a new week Ryoma felt frustrated; even tennis practice didn't hold the usual appeal when there was no chance of playing against Tezuka, or Fuji. Not that Momo and Kaidoh weren't good, but he never got the same kind of excitement playing the two of them as he got from playing other, stronger players.

People like Sanada, Atobe, Yukimura….

Ryoma's mind wandered to the nationals, his match against Yukimura. It had been scary, being blind, not being able to feel anything. But giving up had never even been a possibility. He couldn't, not when he knew he still had more to give.

And it had been fun, more fun and much harder than any other game he'd ever played. And he wanted to do it all over again.

Maybe if he went to Rikkai?

He hadn't asked, but Inui had volunteered the information that Rikkai didn't have their graduation ceremony until a week after Seigaku did, so Yukimura might still be there, if Ryoma showed up at Rikkai's tennis practice. All he'd have to do is hop on a bus. He could go today. Kaidoh-sempai would understand him skipping practice for this. Then again, maybe not. Better leave it to Momo-sempai to tell him.

"Oi, Echizen!" Horio nearly screamed in his ear. "Class's over."

"Che," Ryoma huffed and grabbed his bags.

"What were you thinking about, anyway? I swear I saw you smile!" Horio grinned. "You were thinking about Ryuzaki, weren't you?" he yelled, making Ryoma want to hit him. He glanced to the front of the class where Sakuno was standing with her friends, face flushed after Horio's shout.

"Horio-kun, it wouldn't hurt you to… keep your thoughts to yourself every now and then," Katsuo said, glancing at Sakuno.

Ryoma avoided looking at Sakuno when they left class. He wanted to smack Horio for making him feel so awkward around her. He was sure Sakuno thought he'd been thinking about her, and he hadn't. All Ryoma wanted was to play tennis, why did everyone insist on making girls - and one girl in particular - a part of his life?

"Be careful, that's very expensive!" Ryoma heard an unfamiliar voice say as he stepped through the classroom door in to the hallway. "Don't touch that lever! Watch out kid!"

"Ryoma-kun! Turn around!" Katsuo yelled and Ryoma turned to look at his left. All he could see was a shimmering oval shape falling down on him.

'I'm going to die before I had a chance to play Yukimura again. I just wanted to go to Rikkai,' Ryoma thought as everything around him turned to blue and white lightning.

Rikkai AU

Ryoma lifted a hand to his eyes and stumbled backwards. He grabbed on to the closest thing his hand came into contact with and soon an arm came around his waist to stop him from falling down. He kept his eyes closed and soon realized he'd taken hold of someone's arm as he stumbled. That someone was taller and more muscular than him. The arm around his waist didn't loosen until Ryoma opened his eyes. He took a deep breath when he recognized the face peering down on him with a worried expression.

"Are you alright?" Yukimura Seichii asked with that ever present a gentle smile of his.

"M' fine," Ryoma mumbled and tried to step back only to realize he couldn't free himself from Yukimura's hold. "I'm fine," Ryoma repeated, scowling this time since the other boy hadn't released him yet.

"If you are sure," Yukimura said and let him go. "I'm Yukimura Seichii, nice to meet you."

"Che, I know who you are," Ryoma scoffed.

Yukimura raised an eyebrow and his smile turned pleased. "You do? That's wonderful. And you are?"

Ryoma frowned. Was he fucking kidding? There was no way Yukimura could have forgotten him so fast. They'd played just a few days ago. It wasn't a game you forgot so easily! Not in a few days!

"Ryoma-kun! Are you alright?" Ryoma recognized Katsuo's voice before he turned to look at the other boy.

"I'm fine, just-" Ryoma didn't finish the sentence because he saw what Katsuo was wearing; a white shirt and a tie. They didn't wear ties! And the corridor looked different; the windows were wider than before, it was all wrong! What the hell was going on?

"So it's Ryoma-kun?" Yukimura kept smiling at him. "Perhaps I will see you again before graduation," Yukimura hummed and left, leaving Ryoma to stare at his back. From Yukimura's back his gaze wandered again to the corridor, which didn't look anything at all like it should have, to his own shoes, to his pants, his shirt and tie.

"Where the hell am I?" Ryoma asked out loud.

"Late for our next class with me, Ryoma-kun!" Katsuo yelled and dragged the dazed boy with him. "Why'd you have to embarrass yourself in front of Yukimura-sempai? He's like the coolest of the third years. I wanna be like him one day, be the captain of some team and win the Nationals! Don't you?" Katsuo looked back at him with a look of hero worship on his face.

"Yeah, sure, whatever," Ryoma answered, still at a loss.

"Too bad neither of us plays tennis."

"What?"

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